InvesTrust Makes New Investment in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

InvesTrust purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 11,381 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,797,000. Eli Lilly and Company makes up 2.4% of InvesTrust’s holdings, making the stock its 5th largest holding.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of LLY. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% during the third quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. West Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company during the third quarter worth $58,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter worth $58,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Eli Lilly and Company

In other Eli Lilly and Company news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total transaction of $723,042.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. This trade represents a 14.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 1.8 %

Eli Lilly and Company stock traded up $13.95 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $787.24. The stock had a trading volume of 1,831,335 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,617,005. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $788.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $861.70. Eli Lilly and Company has a 52 week low of $612.70 and a 52 week high of $972.53. The stock has a market cap of $747.34 billion, a PE ratio of 85.11, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.97.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.34). Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 20.48% and a return on equity of 71.08%. The business had revenue of $11.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.09 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.10 earnings per share. Eli Lilly and Company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is a positive change from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is presently 64.86%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,050.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $885.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Monday, September 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 1st. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,002.22.

Eli Lilly and Company Company Profile

Eli Lilly and Company discovers, develops, and markets human pharmaceuticals worldwide. The company offers Basaglar, Humalog, Humalog Mix 75/25, Humalog U-100, Humalog U-200, Humalog Mix 50/50, insulin lispro, insulin lispro protamine, insulin lispro mix 75/25, Humulin, Humulin 70/30, Humulin N, Humulin R, and Humulin U-500 for diabetes; Jardiance, Mounjaro, and Trulicity for type 2 diabetes; and Zepbound for obesity.